I hardly even knew what it was!

My website was more of a passion project than it was a business at that point. When I decided to leave my full-time job three years ago, I had to approach my website differently.

Instead of just writing as a creative outlet, I became more serious about my own website copywriting. I had done some copywriting work for Fortune 500 companies at a PR firm for a while, but this was a whole other beast.

When I transitioned into offering only website copywriting and content creation services, I decided to redesign my website and rethink my own keyword strategy.

Just shy of two years later, I cleared my browser cache and searched for my top four keywords. To my surprise and delight, I was the top result on Google for ALL FOUR of them. No wonder I was getting most of my client inquiries from Google.

All of this is to say that SEO has revolutionized my business (and no, I’m not just saying that because I’m a website copywriter). I know it can do the same for yours.

Let’s talk about why SEO matters for your business too.

Why your website needs to be optimized for search engines

The great thing about optimizing your website for organic search engine traffic (which refers to traffic you don’t have to pay for – score!) is that people often go to Google when they are making a purchasing decision, or at least are considering to make one.

Visitors who turn to Google for answers have a higher probability of converting because they are already actively searching for a solution, so you have an opportunity to provide them with one.

You’ve probably focused more of your time as a small business owner crafting the solution you want to offer rather than optimizing your website to better display and provide that solution.

Don’t worry, that’s why I’m here!

As a creative entrepreneur myself, I’ll break down this seemingly confusing topic in terms we can all understand. While knowing the jargon of SEO can be helpful, it’s better that we put it into language that helps us take action on what we’re learning.

What is SEO?

You’ve probably heard this term a dozen times before, but what does it actually mean? SEO, which is short for search engine optimization, simply means improving your website in order to increase its visibility in search engines.

Let’s use a real-world example. When you type in a keyword or phrase into a search bar, you expect to be provided with a list of the top resources on your topic of choice.

Have you ever wondered how Google decides who gets the top spot? It’s all through SEO!

You’ll often hear people talk about SEO when they say their goal is to get to the #1 spot on Google. This is the most coveted spot in all the land so it should be a goal for all of us.

As you climb toward the top of the SERP (which stands for search engine results page), you increase not only your website traffic but also your credibility. Google is very committed to giving its users the best suggestions and recommendations which is why they take website optimization so seriously.

Anything Google cares about, we should care about!

This is also a good time to say that while Google is not the only search engine out there (I’m looking at you, Bing, Yahoo, and Ask Jeeves… which is somehow still around), it’s the one I’ll be using throughout this series. The other search engines work similarly so rather than constantly say search engines, let’s keep it simple with Google.

Okay, back to the good stuff. Now that you know what SEO is and why you should care about it, let’s talk about the kinds of things Google is looking for. It’s the best way to make sure Google hooks you up with the right visitors.

What search engines like Google are looking for

Before we dig in, remember that Google exists solely to create a great user experience for the people who use the tool. The better their experience is, the more likely they will be to come back and use Google.

This is important because Google depends on traffic to their search engine for advertising. Seeing as they are the number one most visited website on the internet, I’d say they are doing a pretty great job at providing a good user experience. #understatement

Since we are focusing on what search engines like, let’s talk about a few key factors you will want to include in your own search engine optimization strategy.

Relevant evergreen website content

Jargon alert! This definition is thankfully really simple to grasp. Evergreen content is content that stays relevant no matter what time it is consumed. It’s not time-based, like an event recap blog post or a special limited-time offer, so you don’t have to worry about your content going out of style in a few months.

Your website should be built on the foundation of evergreen content. Now, that doesn’t mean you can’t create short-term website pages (which are often called landing pages) with specific timing in mind, but you won’t be focusing on building SEO value with those. Why is that?

SEO is all about improving your website’s performance for the long term. This is why we want to focus on creating evergreen website content that is strong all on its own. We can do this in a few ways, namely by introducing keywords which we’ll talk about next.

Sprinkling keywords into your content

We’ve talked about the beauty of reaching the first page of Google results, but how do you know if you’re doing this whole SEO thing right? It starts with keyword research. Without the right keywords, you’ll be spending time on optimizing for the wrong things.

I have a much more in-depth blog post on keyword research in this blog series, but I’ll give you a little teaser for now. When we think about keywords, let’s assume that you’ve chosen an industry you want to work in and people you want to work with.

Once you have done your own keyword research, which sounds a lot more difficult than it actually is, you can start to weave those keywords into your website copy. Here are a few good places to weave them in:

• Title tags: Before you click into a website from a Google SERP (stands for search engine results page), you’ll often see the website page title tag first. This is because it is the largest text shown on the SERP and is usually colored in blue (unless you’ve clicked on it already so it’s purple).
• Meta description: Underneath your title tag in the SERP, you’ll see a small summary of text describing what the visitor will find on your page. This is what we call a meta description. Place relevant keywords into your meta description, but make sure to weave them in so you don’t get close to keyword stuffing territory.
• Headers: In your website building platform, you’ve probably seen the Heading 1, Heading 2, and Heading 3 options. These features aren’t there just to make your website look pretty. Headers are also a great place to squeeze in some extra SEO value with your keywords. Make sure you have one in there, as long as it is readable and easily digestible.
• Body copy: This refers to all of the content you create in the body paragraphs of your website and blog posts. Instead of listing them all in a row, try spreading them out throughout your content. It may take a little time to get used to it but you’ll start including them in your content instinctively in no time.

Good user experience

There’s that “user experience” term again. It just keeps popping up everywhere! The more you dig into SEO, the more you’ll hear about this term so it’s a good one to understand early on.

User experience refers to, you guessed it, the overall quality of a visitor’s experience on your website. To make a lasting impression, you’ll want to create a good user experience from the get-go.

Here are a few factors that go into a good user experience:

• A well-organized website navigation and overall website structure.
• ONE clear call-to-action (like subscribing to your email list, buying a product, signing up for a consultation call, etc.) on every website page.
• Easy-to-read text formatting with headers, styles, etc. (because no one wants to read a wall of text… not even Google bots)
• Big, bold images to break up your text and add more visual appeal to your content.
• Making sure you don’t frustrate your audience while they are scrolling through your website (like making all of your internal page links open up in a new window… that drives people nuts).

A good user experience doesn’t stop there but this list gives you a good starting point. If you’re still unsure of where to begin, think about the kinds of things you like on other websites you regularly visit. Chances are those things are also appealing to your audience.

If you want your blog to be focused on your quality content, keep the design minimal with no sidebar. If pop-ups turn off your subscribers more than they convert, don’t have them on your homepage.

It’s worth it to continually improve your user experience, so your website traffic and conversion will keep climbing, thanks in large part to Google when you do it right.

Understand how SEO can improve your website traffic

Naturally, there are more than three things that search engines like but this gives you a good foundation. If you are still interested in learning more about SEO, more power to you! This will be an incredibly influential area of your business marketing because the tweaks you make today could provide you with lifetime value.

SEO is all about the long-term strategy so don’t worry about getting it all done in one day or even one month. Any website copywriter and SEO strategist will tell you that it takes time to optimize your website.

With that in mind, here is the next thing you can learn about SEO: Keyword Research Tips from a Website Content Writer

The post What is SEO, and Why Should I Care as a Small Business? appeared first on Sindie.

Do you know your target audience?

It’s a question we’ve been asked dozens, if not hundreds of times. Many of us nod along because we know the basics, but how well do we really know our ideal client?

You’ve probably been told your ideal client profile should hit on the following:

• Gender
• Age range
• Location
• Income
• Likes/Dislikes

While following these general practices, I quickly determined years ago that my ideal client was a 20-35-year-old female from the US who makes $50-75k/year. The description felt broad, but I could catch more people that way, right? Not quite.

So why take a deeper dive into your ideal client profile?

You can start working with dreamier clients

You may be attracting the wrong kind of clients right now and don’t even know it. Instead of casting a wide net, focus on casting a deep net. A wide net brings in all types of clients, a few who are dreamy but many who aren’t so dreamy, while a deep net attracts only those who connect with your specific values and focus.

You’ll gain clarity on other parts of your business

Once you have a clear picture of the ‘who’ of your business, it’s easier to reconnect with your ‘why’ and have a better understanding of the ‘what’ and ‘how’. If you’ve been struggling with finding your brand’s niche, this could be the missing puzzle piece.

Writing copy will become easier and more fulfilling

It’s much easier to write when you know who you’re writing to. When you picture your ideal client profile as an actual person, it helps the process. Give him or her a name for an extra personal touch. Your clients don’t need to fit your profile to an absolute T, but I’ve found that all of my dreamiest clients so far have fit 80-90% of my description.

Here is my own ideal client profile. Her name is Autumn, by the way. (Yes, my 500 Days of Summer obsession is getting out of control. No, I won’t tame it.)

The interesting thing about crafting your ideal client profile is that you’ll find pieces of yourself inside. Some details will be different, naturally, but I guarantee you’ll have more of an emotional connection with your target audience after writing your own.

Now let’s put this exercise into action for you. Get ready for some major enlightenment. Here are some questions to help guide your ideal client profile beyond the demographics:

• What are their strengths? What are their weaknesses?
• What does their ideal day look like?
• How do they want to feel? How do they not want to feel?
• What are their core values?
• What are their quirks?
• What are some of their contradictive traits?
• What energizes them? What drains their energy?
• What does their dreamy vision look like?
• What stage are they at now? What stage would they like to be at?
• What is the heart behind their business?
• Where does their motivation come from?

The post Digging Deeper Into Your Ideal Client Profile appeared first on Sindie.

Last week’s #createlounge topic was Creating Outlines, and a few participants requested I share various outlines and plans I use for my blog. Today, we’re tackling social media calendars.

The truth is, every day I have my head buried in social media calendars for work clients and myself. Social media calendars can be especially handy when collaborating with others.

Before creating a social media calendar, I resorted to endlessly scrolling through my news feeds trying to find something, *anything* to post. Ain’t nobody got time for that, am I right?

Why use a social media calendar?

It keeps everything in one place

Naturally, different social media platforms require different planning. Twitter values concise communication whereas Instagram is all about those visuals. Having a well-updated calendar helps you make a statement on all platforms in a strategic way.

You can prepare content ahead of time

You know that vacation you have planned? You can rest in a hammock and enjoy a cocktail knowing your social content is planned for the duration of your trip and can be scheduled ahead of time. Sounds blissful, right?

Also, this really helps when you take a day to binge read your favorite blogs (I have found Saturday mornings are great for this) and want to make full use of that time. The work you put into your calendar today can definitely benefit you tomorrow.

You never have to worry about not having enough to post

What if one week you’re surrounded by epic, relevant content to share and the next you can’t find any blog posts that suit your fancy? Scheduling social posts in advance can help you spread out your favorite content, helping you and your audience.

It’s probably safe to say you’re convinced now.

Social media calendars are definitely your new best friend. So how do you get started? Let’s go over the basic elements of a social media calendar as well as some cool add-ons that really make it effective and unique to you.

Seriously cool add-ons

Notes

Every spreadsheet I ever make has a section for notes. Without a place to brain dump my “notes to self”, I feel lost. You can also use this notes section as a sounding board for new ideas. There’s no right or wrong way to use it, so see what works best of you. 

CTA Categories

This is one of my favorite ways to organize posts. CTA, an acronym for “call to action”, is what action is intended by the user from the specific offering.

Here is how I break it down, social media style:

• Traffic: Posts where link clicks are Tier 1 (aka muy importante)
• Engagement: Posts where the goal is an increased amount of replies and ongoing conversations
• Conversion: Posts that cause users to opt-in and convert
• Support: Posts giving exposure to outside sources (my most used category)
• Inspirational/Motivational: Posts that are meant to inspire change (think quotes)

You may find another category system that works best for you. I encourage you to make it your own, but you may use this as a guide to get started.

Timing

Just like there’s an optimal length for each platform, there’s also an optimal time to publish each post type depending on the CTA. For example, I’ve found that on Twitter, engagement posts do better at night from 7 PM – 9 PM or early afternoon from 11 PM – 1 PM. You can then build your calendar around these optimal times. It takes some experimentation, but that’s the fun part.

Separate Tabs

If you’re using Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, AND Facebook to regularly post content, you may want to use separate tabs within your spreadsheet for each platform. You can do this easily on Google Sheets, Excel, or other spreadsheet programs locating the “+” tab at the bottom, meaning “add tab.”

… and now for something extra!

Because I’m all ‘bout those freebies, ‘bout those freebies, I wanted to share a template based on the social media calendar I *actually* use. It has all of the basics AND the add-ons I talked about above.

The post Creating an Effective Social Media Calendar appeared first on Sindie.

More often than not, if someone is trying to sell you something, they will feature at least one testimonial. You’ll see testimonials on landing pages, websites, advertising pages, and more.

So why do you want testimonials of your own?

They highlight that customers were beyond satisfied with your product or service

This lowers the barrier to entry, meaning if a potential customer had doubts before, they might not after reading a stellar review from someone else.

It looks less self-promotional

Sure, you can explain how amazing your product or service is until you’re blue in the face, but that doesn’t mean your audience will take your word for it. Anyone selling anything online is going to promote the benefits of their work. When someone else does it for you, that’s when people take notice.

It shows that you care about what your audience thinks

You don’t just create a product or service, leave it as is, and watch the money come rolling in. You want to include outside opinion to show your authority. It makes a big impact on the selling process.

Testing a new product or releasing a new service can be scary, especially if it’s your first time.

What if I told you I had a way to get high-quality testimonials before you publish your product or service?

I put together a non-icky step-by-step guide to help you along the way.

#1 Make a list of all the bloggers you want to reach out to

It would be smart to start with some of the well-known bloggers in your niche as they are figures your visitors will recognize. Having a big name behind your product or service speaks volumes about its quality.

You can also use social listening to create a list of bloggers who are interested in the subject of your product or service. People are always posting on social media about how they wish had more information or resources on a topic. Use this to your advantage and create a win-win scenario for you both.

Don’t forget your BBFFs (blog best friends forever)! They will often be more than willing to help out because they already support you in so many other ways. They will usually give the most glowing testimonials too. #bloglove

#2 Create and send an email to each blogger from your list

Your pitch should explain:

• What your product or service is
• Why that person should care
• Why you’ve chosen that person to give feedback (very important!)

Please take the time to personalize each email. It’s good to have a framework, but if you copy and paste the same response to everyone, it won’t lead to an endorsement. No group emails either. That’s just icky.

Remember, this is NOT a sales pitch. You are solely reaching out to offer them either a free (or very, very discounted) product or service in exchange for feedback.

IMPORTANT: Always lead by asking for feedback. If the feedback is more critical than positive, send a nice thank you email for their time but don’t ask for a testimonial since it most likely won’t lead to one. However, if the feedback is beyond positive and the blogger loved your product or service, this is the green light to ask if the blogger would feel comfortable writing a testimonial to recommend the product or service.

It’s good to know now that your effort may not result in a testimonial every time. A blogger may flat out say no from the get-go. This is okay. Keep reaching out and encourage bloggers that do take part in the process to be very honest. Make it a no pressure zone. Besides, you only want to feature authentic quotes from people who are happy to sing your praises.

#3 Follow up

Bloggers are beyond busy. We all get hundreds of requests and emails a week. Check in with the blogger to ask for their initial thoughts. Do this one week after a service and one to two weeks for a product. From there you can have a better timeline of when the blogger will be ready to send over their feedback.

This process is more of a marathon than a sprint. It may take some time and extra effort on your part, but the quality of testimonials you get will be incredible and it’ll help you smoothly launch your product or service.

The post How to Get Testimonials Before You Launch appeared first on Sindie.